The Spectator has a BBC foreign correspondent embedded with them, namely Paul Wood.
You might remember him from the BBC's Trump 'Golden Shower' coverage (where he lent credibility to the allegations on BBC One's main news bulletins) or, if you're a Spectator reader, you might recall his unpopular piece speculating on whether Donald Trump might be assassinated (a piece entitled Will Donald Trump be assassinated, ousted in a coup or just impeached? that had all manner of Speccie commenters saying they were cancelling their subscription forthwith).
His latest Speccie piece speculates on the coming last days of IS's 'caliphate' (though he reckons what could come next will be "just as dangerous" - or "even worse", as the article's online headline puts it). It's an interesting, thought-provoking piece.
Naturally, however, it drips with beautifully-crafted sarcasm against Ol' Trumpie:
Donald Trump...came into office impatient to finish off the jihadis. As the country star Toby Keith sang at the inauguration, the new President nodding along: ‘You’ll be sorry that you messed with the US of A. Cos we‘ll put a boot in your ass. It’s the American way.’ During the primaries, Trump repeatedly claimed to have a secret, ‘absolutely foolproof’ plan to defeat Isis. This, it turns out, consists of telling the Pentagon to come up with something. The Department of Defense has been given 30 days to fill in the blank space under the heading ‘Secret Foolproof Plan’. The presidential order says: ‘The Plan shall include a comprehensive strategy and plans for the defeat of Isis.’
Is there a BBC reporter left who won't be sarcastic about the present US president?
Wood has been expressing personal opinion in his Spectator pieces. I find it hard to believe no complaints have been made about this violation of BBC rules. I bet there have been complaints and they've been dismissed on the usual 'Nothing to do with us, he's a freelancer' (which is still against the rules) or 'This is his expert analysis, allowed under the rules of journalism'.
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